Notes from a Fiery Nest

I just picked up a few new games:

Tzolk'in: The Mayan Calendar is a worker-placement game in which workers can perform more advanced actions by waiting, as wheels turn over time to move them to new actions. This is the most "serious" of the new games I got.

Galaxy Trucker is a simultaneous-play spaceship-building and -racing game, created by the same designer (Vlaada Chvatil) as Space Alert and Through the Ages. I got the Anniversary Edition, which has both expansions and a bit more, so there's lots to work with here.

The Ladies of Troyes is an expansion for Troyes, a clever worker-placement game with dice which nevertheless retains decent game balance; the expansion promises to add more variety and replayability. ilanikhan is a fan of this one, only partly for thematic reasons.

Small World Underground is an alternative twist on Small World, a lighthearted wargame which soul_diaspora and I have been playing quite a lot. The two can also be combined for even more chaos. I believe this now fills out my set of expansions and variants in the Small World family, and should keep us having fun for a good while!

Anyone up for some gaming tomorrow afternoon, ending before supper?

The usual drill, arrive after 1:00!

Games at my new place tomorrow, start time 1:00!

7 Wonders!

My copy has now been played over 10 times with various groups, and I think I can declare this the best game since Dominion, at least.

For a summary of what the game is about and how it works, I'll refer you to the above link to BGG; here's my review of what I like and don't like about the game, which is not on BGG.

Pros:
- Mix of strategy, tactics, and luck; more strategic players are likely to do well, but aren't assured of a win
- Wide group size range (3-7, with a 2-player variant)
- Short play time (~45 minutes, including setup and cleanup)
- Moderate player interaction, with no directly destructive interaction
- Very nice artwork
- Quite easy to learn
- Good replayability (setup factors and card shuffles make each game quite different)
- Basic version is good, advanced version adds factors once basic is mastered
- Rules are clear and coverage seems complete
- Box stores components well; 4 rubber bands are useful additions
- Excellent pacing, even with maximum players; downtime is not a problem

Cons (all minor, in my opinion):
- Setup and cleanup takes a little time because of card sorting
- Hard to see how there can be a lot of good expansions for this one
- A rules gotcha that catches most people at least once: players aren't allowed to build a duplicate of a building they already have

For those of you who like little online flash games and want to have something to blame me for, I give you GIRP.

If that isn't frustrating enough for you, try QWOP.

1:00 until who-knows-when... rsvp and/or snacks appreciated but not required!

Also, there are still books for grabbing; you're welcome to stop by even if you aren't keen on gaming. I may even socialize a bit! (Donations for friend in need still welcome.)

It is now a tradition...

Boxing Day, Dec. 26th, I'll be hosting boardgames and suchlike, starting at 1:30.

RSVP/ETA appreciated, as are snacks and other games!

1 pm onward... new stuffs!

Pickup is this Friday... think about how to swap money for your games!

( Now with amounts owing! )

The bulk order marches on, at a 25% discount! Books are taxed at 5%, everything else at 13%.
( Our story so far... )

Bulk Order Rule Number 1: Don't Piss Off The Guys At Fandom II.

I should have made this clear at the outset, so my bad. All the things are to go through me. Don't call Fandom II and ask to put things on the bulk order or whether things are in for it, etc. The only person who deals with the bulk order, as far as they are concerned, isn't even me, it's ranisilath. Rule Number 2 is don't annoy him either: it all goes through me to him. (Breaking Rule Number 1 automatically breaks Rule Number 2, too.) Yes, you can call and ask if they have something in stock and how much it is, and you can go there and browse, but do not try to add anything to the order or look at what's already on it. It's not your order, and frankly, what we're doing is skating on the edge of their intent, so don't push our collective luck. ETA: In other words, don't rub their noses in this business of folks ordering through friends; ask about the games, and don't mention the bulk order. And finally, don't piss me off. Giving me a bad name with any of these folks will do that fast.

Okay, on to brighter subjects... we're now pretty assured of the 25% discount, assuming that everyone plays by the aforementioned rules.

Dominion: Prosperity is in, although not all the ordered copies are in yet; if the others don't come in, I may decide that I don't need that much Dominion after all and let someone else take mine. Otherwise, it's first come, first served. The print run may not be adequate to fill all the demand... we'll see what happens. With 7 copies just for my crew though, I think I've figured out why this one is called "Prosperity"!

Details to follow in a forthcoming post!

Yes, the Carleton U Strategy Club is doing a bulk order again! Standard drill... 20% off when we get over $1K, 25% at $2K. Pickup date is the first Friday in November, I believe. Reply with requests!

Of note:

Betrayal at House on the Hill reprint is expected to arrive Friday.

Dominion: Prosperity was supposed to come out last month; your guess is as good as anyone's when it'll actually get there, but you can order on spec.

1:00 start, until who-knows-when... rsvp/eta appreciated as usual!

Another CanGames down... lots of railgaming (Railroad Tycoon, 1830), and Dominion, and running games. I announced that I'm stepping back from running RoboRally, in order to free up time to run other things; C.o'B. is thinking of taking up the job, since he won quite often, including this year's running.

Bolide was well-liked, but ran way long; I think it was as much a function of the players as the track.

It was good to reconnect with the various con-friends... for whatever reason, there are a fair number of people who, even though they're local, I see only there. Plus, of course, B.McD. and company from Toronto.

The lack of A/C this year (on the fritz) really sucked. I'm still recovering from what feels like heat exhaustion.

I've rolled Dominion: Alchemy into my magic spreadsheet now; it was less work than I feared it might be. Unlike the other expansions, it requires a cluster of cards to work, so I've set it up so that one can select how many alchemy cards to use. 4 seems to be a good number, and 6 is probably the maximum.

I hope my aikido schedule doesn't preclude me going in future years!

For CanGames, I will need to borrow at least 2, preferably 3, full sets of Dominion: Basic, Intrigue and Seaside... anyone out there willing to help out?

I should also finish drawing, and then print, assemble, and playtest my Bolide track, although I can run one of the box tracks if that fails to happen in time, since they didn't actually say that it would be the Singapore track in the description.

The Bulk Order goes through tonight! Below are people's totals, etc.

If you want to add last-minute stuff, we'll be at Fandom II between 6 and 7 for that purpose.

If you want to collect your stuff tonight, we'll be distributing it from Carleton U (1st floor UniCenter behind the International Students' Center) starting around 8.

mnv_iii and beable, I believe I can bring your stuff to Martin's Dominion Day this Sunday.

Speaking of which, I think more people are still welcome to go there... contact him to find out, or he may reply below to confirm the open invite!

( details! )

Games tomorrow, starting 1:00... rsvp/eta appreciated!

R&B is still a go, although we may be 3 for it instead of 4; other games can happen before and in parallel!

I would like to play one of the following Big Games soon, perhaps next Sunday:

Advanced Civilization (afternoon and evening, 7-9 players)
1856 (full afternoon, 4-6 players)
Roads & Boats (full afternoon, 2-4 players, to borrow from dagibbs)
Titan (full afternoon, maybe evening, 4-6 players, , to borrow from dagibbs or the Carleton Club, elimination game, so works best if there are other games at the same time)

Anyone up for doing this next Sunday?

Also, I want to do poker sometime soon, and some dexterity games, and a playtest of my Bolide track for CanGames when it's ready.

The pickup date is still the 12th of March; discount TBD, 20 or 25%. We're just about to hit the 20% minimum, but there's a big wad of extra stuff that'll push us over, no problem.

I still have more to order... games I'm considering include Vasco da Gama, Power Grid Factory Manager, Shipyard, Vikings, Perikles, the Tribune expansion, and Infinite City (yes, the shiny has gotten to me). Of course, if the new Dominion expansions make it in on time, I'll be very tempted by them too.
( Our story so far... )

The pickup date will be the 12th of March; discount TBD, 20 or 25%.

On order so far (italics indicate stuff deemed unlikely):

xiphia:
Dominion
Credo
Black Death
Kremlin

beable:
Martian Fluxx
Zombie Fluxx Flame-Thrower Expansion Pack
Small World
Betrayal at the House on the Hill
Also, price and availability checks on A Touch of Evil: Something Wicked and Hero Pack 1, and Nuclear War

zenten: (corrected)
The Red Dragon Inn 2

green_ogre:
Dominion
Dominion: Seaside expansion
Pandemic
Pandemic: On the Brink
Tikal

1:00, rsvp/eta appreciated but not obligatory!

I'll be done shopping etc. by then, and will need the sanity break, so...

Games tomorrow (Sunday the 20th), 1:00, my place!

RSVP/ETA appreciated as usual.

Depending on the crowd, I may be minded to pull out a bigger game, having recently acquired 1856, Rise of Empires, Small World, and Rails of England and Wales, inter alia.

Games my place Sunday, start time 2 p.m. (note later time!); rsvp appreciated as usual!

This would be a perfect time for people to pay for and pick up bulk order stuff, if you can't join us on Friday at Fandom II.

Friday's schedule:
Arrive at Fandom II around 6 p.m.
Ring in purchases at 7 p.m.
Go to Carleton U. and distribute stuff around 8 p.m.

I believe that the bulk order is on, and will operate under that assumption for the moment. Anything Fandom II sells, you can ask for; I expect either a 20% or 25% discount.

I already have zenten down for Exalted: The Book of Sorcery Volume 4: The Roll of Glorious Divinity I: Gods & Elementals (White Wolf).

Also, I plan to order for myself:
Dominion
Dominion: Intrigue
Dominion: Seaside
Railways of England & Wales
Rise of Empires
Scrappers
Small World

dagibbs, you may be interested in Le Havre.